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Close to Home: A Novel (A DI Adam Fawley Novel) Paperback – March 6, 2018

4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 44,351 ratings

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

A brilliantly plotted psychological crime novel about a missing child and the scandal that erupts in the aftermath with a shocking twist


They know who did it. Perhaps not consciously. Perhaps not yet. But they know.

When eight-year-old Daisy Mason vanishes from her family’s Oxford home during a costume party, Detective Inspector Adam Fawley knows that nine times out of ten, the offender is someone close to home. And Daisy’s family is certainly strange—her mother is obsessed with keeping up appearances, while her father is cold and defensive under questioning. And then there’s Daisy’s little brother, so withdrawn and uncommunicative . . .
 
DI Fawley works against the clock to find any trace of the little girl, but it’s as if she disappeared into thin air—no one saw anything; no one knows anything. But everyone has an opinion, and everyone, it seems, has a secret to conceal.

With a story that feels all too real, 
Close to Home is the best kind of suspense—the kind that sends chills down your spine and keeps you up late at night, thrilled and terrified.
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Cara Hunter has written like a pro, with admirable command of pace and rising tension." ― The Times (London)


“Hunter does a masterly job of building tension and keeping the reader guessing to the very end.”
Publishers Weekly

“This well-written psychological drama will keep you guessing until the very end.”
—Book Reporter

"In this gripping mystery, Hunter keeps her readers guessing about Daisy's fate until the last page."― Daily Express (London)

“[A] mazey, gripping story.”
—Ian Rankin, New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Rebus series

Close to Home is an utterly immersive story that pulls you into the heart of a search for a missing child. Compulsive, with an ending you will not see coming.”
—Emma Kavanagh, author of After We Fall

“An amazing, fast-paced thrill-ride and one of the best crime thrillers I have ever read! An exciting plot combined with top quality writing—just perfect!”
—Kathryn Croft, author of The Girl with No Past and While You Were Sleeping
 
“Great characters, engrossing story and a twist at the end I did not see coming.”
—Marika Cobbold, author of Frozen Music

Close to Home hit the ground running and didn’t stop right until the final page . . . the last [twist] was a genuine stroke of genius . . . told in a unique, modern way that sets the bar for new crime writers . . . the last time I felt that excited by a book was A Kind Worth Killing.”
—John Marrs, author of When You Disappeared and The One

“This book won’t let you off the hook. Once you open it and start reading, forget about doing much else at all.”
—Adele Geras, author of Troy

“[I] finished
Close to Home in one sitting! Such a cleverly written, chilling and twisty read.”
—Nuala Ellwood, author of My Sister’s Bones

About the Author

Cara Hunter lives and works in Oxford. She also studied for a degree and PhD in English literature at Oxford University.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Books (March 6, 2018)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0143131052
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0143131052
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.81 x 5.09 x 7.73 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 44,351 ratings

About the author

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Cara Hunter
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I'm the author of MURDER IN THE FAMILY, and the DI Adam Fawley series, set in Oxford.

I've always been a voracious reader and viewer of crime - I've learned so much from the outstanding writing that we now see on crime TV like Line of Duty or Broadchurch, and I've tried to recreate the experience of watching series like that for my readers. I've been using mixed media from the very first Fawley book - in fact, since before they started calling it mixed media! I love giving my readers different ways to explore the story and I'm such a geek that I do all my artwork myself. My favourite feedback is when readers tell me it's like getting the raw material of the case, so they can be detectives themselves. That's where the idea for MURDER IN THE FAMILY came from.

What else about me? I have a boy cat who does his best to distract me whenever I get close to a keyboard (if you have cats, you'll know), I love travelling, spending time with friends, and I have never knowingly turned down a glass of champagne....

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
44,351 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the plot intriguing with unexpected twists and turns. They describe the book as an engaging read with compelling characters and a fast pace that keeps them hooked. However, some readers find the writing style difficult to follow due to confusing elements.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

34 customers mention "Twists"31 positive3 negative

Customers enjoy the twists and turns in the plot. They find the story engaging and hooked from the beginning. The back-and-forth between the past and present works well in the flow of the story. Readers describe it as the best mystery they have read in years.

"...The plot unfolded in the present – mainly focusing on the investigation into finding Daisy, as well as flashbacks to before...." Read more

"...The characterization was really great, as well. I really hated the Masons and I just wanted to find out what the deal was with this crazy family...." Read more

"The plotting in this book was intricate and well developed, though the ending stretched credulity a bit...." Read more

"...Every one of her books has been a knock-out, an extremely satisfactory mystery with lots of twists...." Read more

23 customers mention "Readability"23 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and compelling. They describe it as an epic, enjoyable read with a captivating story and great writing style.

"This book! It’s SO GOOD! Why has no one told me how good this is? In any case, I am here to tell you to go read this book!..." Read more

"...I enjoyed the ‘pruned-back’ almost script-like sections of police interviews where we have the question and answer dialogue with little else other..." Read more

"...Accented by a series of suspense hangers. Wows abound, spin-offs from a dysfunctional family that held a fancy dress party for the “wrong-side-of-..." Read more

"This story is very well paced and highly engaging. Characters are well drawn and sense of place authentic. The reason for only 4 stars?..." Read more

14 customers mention "Character development"10 positive4 negative

Customers enjoy the characters' development. They find them interesting with personal revelations, and the detective is portrayed as a good person.

"...Overall, I just loved Close to Home. I loved the characters and the writing and the mystery. I am blown away that this is Cara Hunter’s debut book...." Read more

"...It has a good plot but is also strong on character, not that many of them are particularly likeable, but they are memorable...." Read more

"...There were few likeable characters in the book, and the heroes sadness was not explained until very near the end." Read more

"...not that enthralled with figuring it out, the minor plot points and characters are interesting enough on their own...." Read more

12 customers mention "Pacing"10 positive2 negative

Customers find the book's pacing engaging. They say it's well-paced with subtle misdirection and well-timed hints. It's an easy read with an easy language that keeps them hooked.

"...Cara Hunter expertly utilised red herrings, subtle misdirection, and well-timed and carefully hidden hints...." Read more

"...It kept the pace very steady and it made it so much easier for me to keep reading right past my bedtime...." Read more

"...around 20% of the book I was considering DNFing it, but it was quite an easy language, so I decide to push through and am I glad I did!?..." Read more

"This story is very well paced and highly engaging. Characters are well drawn and sense of place authentic. The reason for only 4 stars?..." Read more

17 customers mention "Writing style"10 positive7 negative

Customers have different views on the writing style. Some find it readable and engaging, with a nice mix of police procedural and psychological elements. Others find it confusing, wordy, and not very intriguing. The narrative is told entirely through narration with little dialogue, and the story lacks a fast-paced pace and is one long chapter.

"...Overall, I just loved Close to Home. I loved the characters and the writing and the mystery. I am blown away that this is Cara Hunter’s debut book...." Read more

"...What I liked less was the manner of telling -- almost entirely narrative with little dialogue...." Read more

"Right from the start I was drawn into the story. The author writes with such a realistic tone, it's like someone is just talking to you and you..." Read more

"...didn’t flow as well as past tense and generally speaking the tale wasn’t fast-paced which is the usual reason given for using present tense...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2018
    Barry and Sharon Mason host a summer barbecue for friends and neighbours. When the party ends their eight year-old daughter, Daisy, is nowhere to be found. From the moment DI Adam Fawley arrives on the scene, the lack of emotion, and odd behaviour of both parents strikes him as odd. And as he soon discovers that’s only the beginning.

    Wow, the characters in this book couldn’t have possibly had any more skeletons in their closet. The secrets just kept on coming, and just when you thought you knew all there was to know, there was more. And while you were recovering from that, still more.

    Cara Hunter expertly utilised red herrings, subtle misdirection, and well-timed and carefully hidden hints. There was many a scene, where I was so immersed in what else was going on that I failed to notice important clues, and each new reveal left me reeling, thrilled over the authors ability to surprise me.

    The plot unfolded in the present – mainly focusing on the investigation into finding Daisy, as well as flashbacks to before. The flashbacks used a format not often seen, with the first one taking place the day before Daisy went missing, and then working backwards. Often there would be a plot reveal in the present, followed by the flashback relating to it, increasing my dread at every turn. There were also twitter posts inserted throughout, containing sadness and well wishes from the public, as well as accusations, conspiracy theories, and escalations of violence. Not only were the views and opinions downright scary in some instances, but they also showed just how much social media can impede an investigation. There are some distressing and disturbing scenes – given the topic it would be hard for there not to be – but they are handled sensitively, and aren’t overly graphic.

    I really enjoyed DI Adam Fawley and his team. Even though we did get some of his tragic back story, I feel like we’ve barely scratched the surface, and I’m relishing delving more into his psyche as the series progresses. Can’t wait to get stuck into book two, ‘In the Dark’.
    12 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2020
    This book! It’s SO GOOD! Why has no one told me how good this is? In any case, I am here to tell you to go read this book!

    Close to Home kept me guessing the whole time. Did one of my guesses end up being right? Sure, but I had about 9 theories going at the same time and I really didn’t commit to the real conclusion until only a few pages before it was revealed. Hunter did an incredible job of making numerous red herrings seem not just plausible, but likely.

    The characterization was really great, as well. I really hated the Masons and I just wanted to find out what the deal was with this crazy family. I also really liked all of the police officers. It’s not often in these type of books that the members of the police force are so likable, but they were here. I can’t wait to read more about them. Adam Fawley was a great main character. Even though he had a tragic backstory, he was not some cliched, half-way functioning alcoholic. He was a good detective and he was also a good person.

    I thought I would hate the non-traditional formatting with it’s lack of proper chapters, but it actually ended up working for me. It kept the pace very steady and it made it so much easier for me to keep reading right past my bedtime. I loved the multiple POVs and timelines utilized, as well as the tweets. I feel this book helps prove my theory that Twitter is the worst thing to ever happen to society (and yes, I say that knowing that I will tweet a link to this review). The whole Trial by Twitter thing is so relevant to our world today and I thought it was really smart to include it here.
    The only tiny thing I didn’t like about the book was that I wanted more details for the conclusion. We’re given enough answers to know what happens, but I would have liked to have known all the little details on how we got there. It was just a little too vague to fully satisfy me, but this is me just being nit-picky.

    Overall, I just loved Close to Home. I loved the characters and the writing and the mystery. I am blown away that this is Cara Hunter’s debut book. It was so cleverly written and I never wanted to put it down. This is my favorite book of the year so far and Hunter has made her way onto my favorite authors list. I can’t wait to read the next book!

    Overall Rating (out of 5): 4.5 Stars
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2020
    The plotting in this book was intricate and well developed, though the ending stretched credulity a bit. What I liked less was the manner of telling -- almost entirely narrative with little dialogue. In addition, commentary from social media about what was going on was inserted -- sometimes more than a full page of tweets and/or newspaper clips. There were few likeable characters in the book, and the heroes sadness was not explained until very near the end.
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2024
    I started reading Cara Hunter's books in random order, so I had read all the others before I worked my way back to this, her first book. Every one of her books has been a knock-out, an extremely satisfactory mystery with lots of twists. I was hesitant to read this one because I didn't think her debut novel could possibly be as good as her later ones. I recommend you start reading this when you don't have much else to do, because once you read the first couple chapters you won't want to stop until you get to the end of the book. I'm glad I've read all her subsequent books, but I'm also glad I don't have a long wait until her next book comes out!
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Close to Home
    Reviewed in India on September 15, 2021
    I'm currently reading it and despite my busy schedule I am unable to put it down, really intriguing and fascinating. I m in love with the book and surely going to read Cara Hunter's next one. :)
  • liane de almeida
    5.0 out of 5 stars história intrigante
    Reviewed in Brazil on June 28, 2019
    historia que faz voce ficar lendo ate o fim!
  • D. Matthews
    5.0 out of 5 stars Not what I expected!
    Reviewed in Canada on October 14, 2018
    Bought this book for a Book Club. Never would have selected it otherwise.
    Enjoyed it immensely. Took me out of my usual genre. Highly recommend.
  • DebbieR
    5.0 out of 5 stars Clever and enjoyable.
    Reviewed in France on November 17, 2019
    I enjoyed this book. I have read another one of the Adam Fawley books (unfortunately out of order) which referred back to this case which made me want to read it. Cara Hunter’s style of timelines going both backwards and forwards is very clearly written and slowly reveals what led up to the event whilst progressing the Police investigation. Very clever. I will seek out the next in the series.
  • James Craft
    5.0 out of 5 stars Das echte Oxford
    Reviewed in Germany on November 9, 2019
    Vielen Dank! Pünktlich geliefert. Kann das Buch wärmstens empfehlen. Obwohl keiner gut wegkommt gibt es sogar ein Happyend. Sehr überzeugendes Sittenbild der modernen englischen Geselldschaft.